The last glaciers in Asia
Tim is climbing three of the world’s remaining 25 equatorial mountains with glaciers during the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris in November 2015.
These mountains – Carstensz Pyramid in Asia, Mount Stanley in Africa and Chimborazo in South America – are all expected to lose their glaciers within the next 25 years.
When first surveyed in 1938, the Carstensz glaciers consisted of two valley glaciers, the Meren and Carstensz, as well as a plateau glacier, the Northwall Firn. The Northwall Firn on the plateau that Tim can see in the distance has since separated into western and eastern ice masses. The eastern Northwall Firn also formed part of the Meren glacier.
By the early 1990s, the Meren glacier separated from the eastern Northwall Firn, which hastened complete melting of the former some time between 1997 and 2000. The three remaining glaciers are Carstensz, eastern Northwall Firn and Western Northwall Firn. These are the last remnants of equatorial glacial ice in Asia.
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